Academic Writing

Finding Key
Points and
Note-making
UNIT
1.6
After finding a suitable source, identifying relevant sections of text and preparing an
outline, the next step is to select the key points that relate to your topic and make
notes on them. This unit explains and practises this process, which also involves
skills further developed in
Unit 1.7
Summarising and Paraphrasing.
1 Finding key points
Before making notes, you need to find the main ideas in a text. One of these is often, but not
always, in the first sentence of a paragraph.
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Read the following paragraph, about the growing market for products designed for
older people, and underline two key points. Then choose a title for the paragraph.
Title: _______________________________________________________
The generation born after the Second World War, sometimes called the baby
boomers, are now reaching retirement age, and businesses are starting to realise that
they are a wealthier market than any previous retirement group. Financial products,
travel and medicines are well-established industries that interest the over-60s, but
others are now focusing on this age group. Volkswagen, for instance, has produced a
car with raised seats and more interior space to appeal to their tastes. In Japan, with
its ageing population, companies have more experience of selling to the retired, and
have been successful with unusual products such as a robotic seal, which serves as a

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2 Finding relevant points
When preparing to write an essay, you have to search for information and ideas relevant to
your subject. Therefore, the key points that you select must relate to that topic.
You are given an essay title: ‘Does the state have a role in promoting public health?’
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Read the following article and underline five key points that relate to your essay
subject.
pet substitute for the lonely. There are, however, certain difficulties in selling to this
market. Some customers resent being addressed as ‘old’ since they see themselves as
more youthful, while there is a huge variation in the profile of the baby boomers,
ranging from healthy and active to the bed-ridden and infirm.
1.6: Finding Key Points and Note-making
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